


I'm More of a Lemonlight Person, Myself

by Shangalangalang



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: And Ed struggles to keep Bart from judging his self-worth based on how the media portrays the team, Canon Universe, In which Bart doesn't know how to deal with FOX News, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 07:25:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19763371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shangalangalang/pseuds/Shangalangalang
Summary: It turns out being in the limelight- or, the lemonlight, as Bart Allen puts it- isn’t all that it's cut out to be. As news coverage of the newly formed Outsiders becomes increasingly prevalent, Bart experiences the dark side of going public as a superhero.





	I'm More of a Lemonlight Person, Myself

It turned out being in the limelight- or, the lemonlight, as Bart Allen liked to put it- wasn’t all that it was cut out to be.

Bart wasn’t a shy person by any means. He was always the first person to introduce himself to strangers, always the first one to initiate conversations, and always the first one to crack a joke and make people laugh. He was energetic, lively, and a true extrovert in every sense of the word. So when Garfield suggested making the team go public, Bart was more than happy to jump on board with the idea. After all, he agreed with Gar’s logic; keeping everything they did hidden away in the shadows didn’t help people feel safer. It just made it easier for the bad guys to frame the superheroes in a negative light and keep the public from wholeheartedly trusting the heroes who wanted to protect them. He never understood the whole secret ID thing.

Bringing down the Reach ship into the lake in an act of valiant self-sacrifice was a step forward in the right direction for laying out the groundwork of gaining the public’s trust. The raw footage combined with the reporter’s live commentary had people on their toes watching the outcome of the situation. The team’s decision to drive the Reach ship into the lake despite the high risks that came with crashing into water spoke volumes about their heroic intentions, and the declaration to stand in the spotlight against evil was seen as passionate and moving.

But there was always opposition, and the opposition against meta-humans in particular was at its all-time high. Although many news agencies began to portray the Outsiders in a more positive and inquisitive light, other media groups such as G. Gordon Godfrey’s talk show still openly bashed the idea of superheroes and fueled anger amongst people who were still adamantly against meta-humans.

And that’s what Bart didn’t quite understand. Sitting on Eduardo’s plush couch and watching TV shouldn’t have been as anxiety-ridden as it was, but when your face was plastered on different news channels, all with differing ratings and opinions, it was hard to not feel cornered and overwhelmed. He normally loved watching TV with Ed, even got nervous as their hands touched when they reached for the popcorn at the same time. But this was far from a normal situation. As bad as he felt about bringing down the mood during one of the rare times they had to themselves, Bart couldn’t muster up the same positive energy he usually exuded, especially when the TV’s headline read “The Outsiders: True Heroes or a Total Teenage Scam?”.

“I just don’t get why people hate us so much. We help fight crime, we put the bad guys in jail, and what do we get? Conspiracy theories and people threatening to kick us out of the country. Do people not like the idea of being safe?” Bart groaned, finally turning the TV off and tossing the remote to the side. Ed flinched from the sudden movement, having had his arm around Bart’s shoulder. “This is _so_ moded.”

“You know what else is moded? We’re out of popcorn again. I can go make more.” Ed suggested, trying not to let Bart get too into his head about the news. For the past couple of weeks, keeping up with media coverage of the team was the only thing Bart was concerned with, even when he was with Ed. And while he didn’t mind the distraction, he didn’t like it when Bart was sad or angry. It was rare to see him so down in the dumps.

“Not hungry.”

Ed knew Bart was upset. A speedster’s sudden lack of appetite could only be correlated to severe illness or a bad mood. He sat back down on the couch, knowing it wasn’t the right time to try and lighten the mood further.

“Okay, this is clearly bothering you a lot. Do you wanna talk about it?”

“What’s there to talk about? The fact that it makes no sense for people to push away the same people who want to help them? Even if we have powers, we're using them for good. We're not here to attack them, we're here to protect them.”

“Well, people don’t like others who are different from them. It’s been that way since…pretty much forever.” Ed rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand, unsure of how to help Bart overcome this obstacle. As an Argentinian, he’d heard his fair share of pointed remarks from the occasional stranger, but he wasn’t sure if Bart was used to such intolerance. “And for all they know, meta-humans can choose to use their powers for bad instead of good whenever they want. That wouldn’t be so great. The people who dislike you guys are the ones who’re afraid of another potential Reach takeover. They kind of set a bad precedent for meta-humans and aliens everywhere.”

“Ugh.” Bart crossed his arms across his chest and sank further into the couch, clearly annoyed. “If only they knew how a complete Reach takeover really could have played out. Back in the future, we all worked together ‘cause that was the only option we had. There was no hate, no news, no G. Gordon, only human solidarity against the Reach. Forced labor was a lot easier when everyone just cooperated.”

“Things are different now. Plus, would you really rather have people united under the Reach’s forced labor as opposed to what you have now?”

“No. And I hate it when you play Devil’s Advocate.”

“That’s why I do it. You’ve gotta see both sides to truly understand the bigger picture.” Ed shrugged. “And hey, at least people like Kid Flash. Everyone’s still wary of Blue because of the whole Reach incident. And most of you guys don’t exactly have a PR team paid to hype you up on social media.”

He was right; Bart and Gar tended to rack up relatively positive responses in the press as the Flash’s renowned sidekick and world-famous celebrity respectfully. The other members of the Outsiders weren’t faring too well in terms of public opinion. Blue Beetle was still seen as a general threat due to his alleged ties with the Reach, even though the League established that he was being controlled against his will. Wonder Girl got a lot of nasty comments from misogynistic citizens who didn’t believe girls belonged in the battlefield, because they’d “drag the others down”. Static got flack for his skin color, which was unfortunately not entirely unexpected and was particularly reflective of how close-minded the public could be, and Brion was seen as an illegal alien with no right to stay in the country- especially after the video of him attacking DeLamb back in Markovia went viral.

The overall image of the Outsiders wasn’t exactly off to a flawless start, even after the altercation in Brooklyn between the team and the Reach ship. Although the livestream of the whole incident did end up making waves on the Internet, it didn’t drastically impact public opinion in a way that completely shifted the tides in favor of meta-humans. It did win over some skeptics, but not all of them. There were still controversial claims of the whole thing being a hoax set up by the League to make themselves look better, and people insisting that the team was unnecessary- even as they watched the Air Force planes get obliterated by the Reach ship's superior alien technology.

"It’s so stupid. The team isn't just made up of me and Gar, it's made up of me, Gar, Blue, Wonder Girl, Static, and Geo-Force."

“If it helps, the kids at the center thought all of you guys were really cool.” Ed pat Bart on the back reassuringly. “That livestream at Brooklyn really stirred something within them, especially for Mist and Wendy. It was pretty inspiring.”

“Really? Because honestly, I’m feeling like a fraud, watching everyone but me and Gar get dumped on.” Bart grumbled. “All this spotlight’s only making me more aware of what people think of the team.”

“Makes you wonder how Gar deals with it all the time, huh?”

“Yeah, tell me about it. Dude, I feel like I have no privacy anymore. People take pictures of me and try to figure out who I am. There are entire websites dedicated to figuring out who I am behind the mask. There’s a bunch of theories and pictures backing up those theories. Granted, those theories are way off and the pictures always end up blurry, but seriously, why do people care so much?” Bart kicked his feet up on the coffee table with a huff, earning a disapproving look from Ed.

“Wait, I thought you didn’t care about the whole secret ID situation?”

“Well, that was before I was given strict orders to ‘maintain discretion at all times’. Also, it feels like I’m getting stalked,” Bart rolled his eyes and squinted, putting air quotes around his words to mock the way Batman delivered the line. “I don’t really care about revealing my identity, but clearly Batman and Flash do, and I don’t want them to chew me out. Batman’s lectures are the definition of moded. But as long as he says no, the longer the websites will stay up and running and prying into my personal life.”

“You’re the Flash’s sidekick, and you’re finally being pushed back into the spotlight. Of course everyone wants to know who you are.” Ed remarked, gently nudging Bart’s feet back on the floor. “Doesn’t make it right, but it is how it is.”

“But I’m not the Flash’s sidekick. Not really. Wally was. And it’s not like the public ever knew about Wally being Kid Flash, but no one’s even aware that the real Kid Flash they knew and loved is gone. I’m just his placeholder.”

Ed frowned. This wasn’t just about Bart being overwhelmed by the media anymore. He knew Bart had a complex about being a mere replacement, and while the topic didn’t come up often, it always sucked when it did. “Stop that. Give yourself more credit. You’re a lot more than a placeholder, you’re his legacy.”

“Sure. But I guess what I'm getting at is that all this news coverage, and all these different opinions are making me question whether or not doing this is even right,” Bart sighed. His leg began bobbing up and down, a recurring habit that Ed noticed came up whenever he was perplexed or bored. “Why bother playing hero when the majority of the public still sees the team as a threat? It doesn't matter if they see me and Gar as good guys if they're gonna doubt the rest of the team and say they don't belong. I mean, I’m not even from this timeline. If anyone's really an 'Outsider', it's me.” 

“But you’re here now. That’s what matters.” Ed scooted closer to Bart, tightening his grip around the speedster’s shoulders reassuringly.

“You know what’s the worst? Being told that by you and still not feeling like I really belong.” Bart looked sullenly at his reflection in the television screen. “Like I messed up the timeline somehow, somewhere, and that I’m the reason Wally’s gone.”

“You’re not.” Ed stated firmly. “You helped save the world. Whatever happened in between was not your fault. He died as a true hero.”

“I just…I feel like Wally’s gotta come back eventually somehow. That he isn’t completely dead. It's a weird feeling, like he's out there somewhere. And if he comes back, sure, it’ll be crash. But I’ll just go back to being plain old Bart Allen, or Impulse, or whatever. I don’t know. My entire identity will have been an act. No more Kid Flash. No more heroic duties. I'll just be some kid who came from an apocalyptic future who happens to have super speed.”

“Plain old Bart Allen from an apocalyptic future doesn’t sound like a bad thing to me.” Ed leaned in towards Bart with a reassuring smile on his face. “And the return of Impulse doesn’t sound so terrible, either. In fact, I’d be pretty happy about it. Yellow and red is iconic, sure, but it’s not a very flattering color combo. Not like red and white.”

Bart tried his hardest to keep a straight face, despite himself.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to tease me while I was having a serious moment.” he muttered, ears turning slightly red.

“And I’d say you’d be right.” Ed gave Bart a quick peck on the cheek with a playful smirk. "For the record, you pull off both costumes well, so don't worry."

"Gee, thanks."

“But in all seriousness, I think you’re overanalyzing this entire thing." Ed continued. "Just...try and think about it this way. Why are you a hero in the first place? It’s ‘cause you want to help people, right? Not because of the recognition that comes with it.”

Bart nodded, uncharacteristically silent for once.

“So, keep helping people. Get out there and show the public what you’re capable of. You have the amazing opportunity to make the world a better place, and no good deed goes unpunished. Just keep doing what you do and eventually, everyone will come around. And you'll see that you had just as much to do with it as everyone else who's involved. You're trying too hard to appease a crowd that's gonna take a while to win over. Actions speak louder than words, and those people need to see a lot of proof that the Outsiders are a lot more helpful than harmful before they change their minds.”

Bart leaned his head against Ed’s shoulder, closing his eyes and exhaling away all the tension from his lungs. For a few moments, there was comforting silence. But Bart could never stay silent for too long. “Y'know, you’re really good at making people feel better about themselves.”

“I’d hope so. It’s kind of my job.” Ed chuckled, thinking back to all the motivating speeches he had to come up with on the fly to help the meta-teens at the center. It was nice knowing they weren’t given in vain. And it was always nice being able to cheer people up.

"And you're lucky." Bart added.

"Hm?"

"You don't have to deal with all this moded media attention. Not nearly as much, anyway."

"Let's keep it that way. The meta-teen center's already pretty controversial as is, I don't wanna draw more attention to Star Labs by putting myself out there, too."

“Good point,” Bart detached himself from Ed and stretched his limbs out, yawning. “Now that we know watching the news is a terrible idea, what do you say we make some fresh popcorn and watch something on Netflix instead?”

“I’m down,” Ed smiled, happy Bart was getting back his mojo. He handed the bowl to Bart with a cheeky grin. “Don’t forget the extra butter.”

“Hey, wait, aren’t I the guest here? Why do I have to make the popcorn?”

“Because I made it the first five times you finished it. It’s your turn.”

“Fine.”

**Author's Note:**

> BRO IT'S SO HARD TO WRITE A FIC WHEN YOU LITERALLY HAVE LIKE THREE MINUTES OF TOTAL INTERACTION BETWEEN THE CHARACTERS LMAO 
> 
> BASED GRANDON GIVE ME MORE SUSTENANCE TO WORK WITH PLS I AM TRYING TO MAKE TOAST OUT OF BREADCRUMBS


End file.
